RAILTRACK has been accused of committing "environmental vandalism" along the line near Winnersh after cutting down mature trees to keep leaves off the track.

Residents in Albany Park Close say they are angry that work to trim trees on the railway embankment has resulted in fully-grown oaks and birches being completely chopped down.

Kevin Thiele, who has lived in the close for the past five years, said his daughters Grace, aged 11, and Bryony, seven, were particularly upset to see a massive gap where a haven for wildlife used to be.

He said: "We got a letter from Railtrack which said there would be minor pruning and selective removal.

"There's the visual impact, the noise, the loss of wildlife and the possibility of subsidence.

"Believe it or not, some people use it as a cut through — they walk across the tracks."

"How many people, having had a couple of pints, will now stagger across the line?

"If I was a braver man I would probably chain myself to the rails in protest!"

Mr Thiele said he did not have any issue with the contractors who started the work last Wednesday, but was demanding answers from Railtrack in an ongoing e-mail war.

Winnersh councillor Prue Bray said she believed Railtrack should have given more consideration to the residents in Albany Park Close.

She said: "What's behind this is they're trying to stop leaves getting onto the track, but the trees have just been hacked down.

"There's now no screen at all, there's no protection from the noise.

"I would like them to reconsider how they go about this and think about the residents who have to live next door to the railway line.

"They need to think about the environmental impact of what they're doing — at the moment I think it's environmental vandalism."

But a Railtrack spokesman insisted the work was necessary on safety grounds.

She said: "This is safety critical work and it's work we have to do.

"We have had instances in the past where we had had leaves on the line.

"We have been trying to fell selectively but it has been necessary in some cases to cut the trees right back.

"They may obscure signals or a driver's view of the line — there's no two ways about it."